Tenmei KANOH

Born 1942 in Aichi. Studied under Toichi Ogawa and Takashi Kijima after graduating from Nagoya City Industrial Arts High School, and later went independent as a freelance photographer focusing on advertising in particular. Taking mainly charge of centerfolds for Heibon Punch magazine, he produced a series of nude photographs, and established his own unique style of ”photography as a tool for ripping up and objecting against the times.” After traveling to the USA to work on a New York special for Heibon Punch in 1969, he stayed in NY to sneak in and photograph orgy parties with models and hipsters of all races, and instantly gained fame with the ”FUCK” series that precisely reflected the mood in New York at the time. After that he expanded his field of activity to appearances in TV and cinema. He published Monthly Tenmei in 1993, and the photo collection Kikuze in ’94, stirring up controversy with a string of radical nude photographs. He received several prizes including the Japan Advertising Artists Club Award, APA Award, Asahi Advertising Award, and Mainichi Advertising Award among others.